This year's high school graduates are entering the real world at a critical time in history.

They are excited to go out on their own, meet new types of people and expand their points of view, but will be doing it against a national backdrop of fast-moving change and uncertainty.

How do they feel about moving on to college and careers, dealing with student loans and other pieces of new adulthood? How confident (or not) are they that they will succeed in the fast-moving world? What are they simply just excited about?

Public Opinion spoke with several area students about how they perceive their future, their job expectations, financial expectations, and more. In the end, each was optimistic they could obtain their goals, even if they might struggle to get there.

Paying for a future that's worth it

The Franklin County students we talked to are going all over the East Coast for school, and in one case, an academy to become a career firefighter.

Campbell Parker and Kelton Chastulik are both moving onto Ivy League colleges. Both are athletes, and believe had it not been for their physical talents, they would not have made the cut for their new schools.

Greencastle-Antrim High School senior Campbell Parker will participate in track and field at University of Pennsylvania in the fall.(Photo: Submitted)

Campbell Parker, 18, who will soon graduate from Greencastle-Antrim High School, will set off for the University of Pennsylvania, where he plans to study engineering.

Parker is confident the in-demand engineering field will allow him to handle paying his loans once he has his degree in-hand and can get working.

"I think it's a mixture between the connections I'm going to make, and also my field," Parker said about why he feels security in his job choice. He added that companies like Apple and Google are constantly hiring engineers for different areas of the companies.

Unlike Parker, Chastulik remains unsure of where he will end up in a few years. He will move on from Chambersburg Area Senior High School for Princeton University - quite a leap for a student who will be the first in his family to go to college - but has yet to pick a field of study to concentrate on. He has so far considered pre-law, economics, political science, journalism and also the social sciences.

Chambersburg Area Senior High School senior Kelton Chastulik will go to Princeton in the fall to play football and compete in track and field.(Photo: Submitted)

"A degree is a degree, but also the name does matter. I do feel stable, right now I'm more worried about what I want to do. There's still many more options."

He is not too worried about the cost of Princeton, though. as he was happy to receive some serious need-based financial aid. But he knows many in his class are worried about the hefty cost of a college education and the loans most will need to pay for theirs.

"When I see stories about students hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, thinking about loans, it's wild to think about," Chastulik said.

Lindsay McGuire, 18 and a senior at CASHS, expects that she will successfully maneuver her way through any struggles she may face dealing with college costs.

She plans to work through school to pay for her degree at the University at Pittsburgh and the extra schooling necessary to become a doctor.

Because becoming a doctor is such a long, costly process, McGuire said she had wondered whether it would be worth it in the end to pursue that instead of something that would cost less from the start.

Chambersburg Area Senior High School senior Lindsay McGuire, hanging out with IB Biology teacher Steven Onomastico. McGuire is headed to University of Pittsburgh in the fall, where she plans on studying bio-chemistry and being on a pre-med track.(Photo: Submitted)

"You kinda have to go for the dream, because otherwise there's no other time for the dream," she said, describing her choice to just go for it. She plans to go into pediatrics.

CASHS senior Robbie Snively, 18, is taking a different route from many of his friends. He won't go to a traditional college, but instead will train to become a career firefighter.

He wanted to enlist in the Air Force, but that dream was shot down when he was medically disqualified. His experience as a junior firefighter in Marion inspired him to go back to that field, but he will likely move to Maryland or Virginia for it.

"I think right out of the fire academy they start around $45-50,000" Snively said. "I feel like that's a good start, and there's definitely ways to advance in that field."

Eventually, Snively would like to become a fire chief.

He knows his career choice isn't exactly typical among his friends and that it will be stressful, but he feels his life has prepared him for it, so he's not too nervous.

However, Snively thinks his classmates need to open their eyes more to what lies ahead of them.

"Some people are going to get a reality shock, I think. They're not ready for what's going to happen," Snivley said about what he sees around his class.

Moving out and moving on

Like many small-town teens, local graduates are anxious to get out of their hometowns, meet new people and broaden their horizons.

"I would say, being in sports, I know a lot of kids who would rather work for their whole lives but I would definitely say there are a great amount of kids who want to get out of Franklin County," he said. "Kids who want to go to the military. Some of my friends who want to go into the work force. Kids who want to do different things."

Parker loves his hometown of Greencastle, but its lack of cultural diversity has inspired him to want to branch out.

"Some of my friends are ready to get out, some of them are more home bodies," Parker said. "I really do hope the best for all of my friends. Branch out to do stuff to the full potential."

Snivley was one of the few students to say he has thought about what kind of car he might drive one day and what his future house may be like, but he still does not have a specific hope for either. He's only thinking generally, but he's excited about it.

Will any of it matter?

The country's harsh political climate comes at a critical time in the lives of this year's new high school graduates. The students we talked to are trying to keep a positive outlook even though they may be anxious about how the country's problems could impact their own lives.

Chambersburg Area Senior High School senior Robbie Snively plans on becoming a career firefighter after graduation.(Photo: Submitted)

"I think it's all right as of right now, there's a lot of tension that could be settled," Snivley said. "I think it's gonna get worse before it gets better."

For McGuire, it's the timing of all this in her and her friends' lives that makes her anxious.

"I think that the majority of us are kind of worried," McGuire said. "That might be due to lack of knowledge, just because of the uncertainty of what's happening. And the fact that it's happening at such a pivotal time."

As each sets off into their new journey, each one appears optimistic and excited for their future.

Parker knows that despite his major uncertainty, he's driven to do his best.

"I think another thing about this age is, I do have an idea of what I want to do, the sort of work I want. I'm always looking to change," Parker said. Maybe I want to be a physicist, move majors, move fields, make sure I'm thriving and succeed. I'm really trying to stay confident."

McGuire feels similarly.

"I think you kind of have to be at this point, or you're starting a leg down," McGuire said. "I've done everything at this point to make sure I’m successful."